Many associations and nonprofits offer a litany of in-person experiences: events, conventions, tradeshows, meetups, etc. These in-person events provide numerous opportunities for members, volunteers, advocates, staff and other kinds of constituents to learn, participate, network, and much more. But, what if those offline experiences could reach your vast online audience as well?
4. 4
How can we use our online tools
in ways that inspire real-life
action? How can we use them to
strengthen our relationships?
How can they be used to create
community?
5. 5
Strong ties & weak ties should not
be seen as opposites, but rather
as supporting and
complementary dynamics.
7. 7
Welcome!
• Communities in Action
• How Online Community Can Extend the Life of your Events
• How Online Community Can Foster Offline Activity
• How Offline Activity Can Drive Online Engagement
22. 22
Continue the Discussion Online
• Use the community forum to allow members to discuss the
event
• Ask presenters for additional discussion questions to post on
the community to continue the discussion after the conference.
Either collect and post these on their behalf or have them do so.
• Create specific follow up forum topics (URL in meeting
handouts)
• Call for suggestions for next year
33. 33
Know Your Audience
One Word: Millennials!
• Passionate about taking action
• Very “plugged in”
• Meet them where they are, and
facilitate:
• - Telling their story
• - Finding inspiration
• - Connecting with and recruiting
peers
35. 35
Your online community is full of your volunteers,
members and advocates – an audience already
interested in your message.
Utilize the platform to amplify your message and your
mission – and your attendees – for real-life events and
on the ground actions that matter most to your
organization.
The Revolution Will Not Be Tweeted (New Yorker, 2010, Malcolm Gladwell)
2. FB & Twitter = still babies, protestors in Moldova, former Soviet Union, used Twitter to gather more than 10K to protest their Communist govt = Twitter Revolution
2. Gladwell argued that Twitter would never be a tool used for real social action b/c it’s make up of weak ties vs strong ties
3. I think we've seen that he wasn't 100% correc. It’s the questions that his argument raised around online engagement
1. This the same question we are asking today.
2. Which isn’t surprising, given that it’s only been 7 years since the article was published.
3. In tech time, I’m sure that’s equivalent to an eon. But in reality, it hasn’t been that long.
4. However, in the last 7 years, what we have learned (and where I think Gladwell was wrong)….
Is that weak and strong ties (our online and offline relationships) were never on opposite sides. In fact, and we’ve seen this in online communities, they have always been supportive of each other. There’s a very complementary dynamic.
Each relationship strengthens the other.
So let’s look at community – There are 3 things you need to build community:
And the goal of both online and offline communities is the same – to strengthen these relationships. Between your members and with your organization.
So both your offline and online communities need the same thing to exist and thrive, and they each have the same goal.
So it makes sense that the more successful you are at merging these two worlds, bridging any gaps that may exist today, the more successful your community and your organization will be.
And that’s exactly what we’re talking about today.
Before we get into specific examples, and look at some tips and tools, I am curious how many of your organizations have an offline component – event, tradeshow, conference, or local chapter of volumnteers on the ground? How many of your organizations also have an online community?
There are lots of audiences and organizations that can benefit from this supportive relationship between our online & offline activities.
MENTOR MATCHING PROGRAM - (Institute of Food Technologists) Provide opportunities for professionals in the food science & technology industry to connect online & offline
TRAVEL A LOT - Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), Largest aviation community in the world, active in over 75 countries
LARGE ORGANIZATION - NWF EcoLeaders (LARGE ORG, can’t have feet on the ground in every city)
SMALL STAFF – Shot @ Life, Able to accomplish more by enabling & educating volunteers within the community, thereby increasing the activity level of volunteers in their communities
VOLUNTEER RECRUITMENT & TRAINING – Holt International - The main purpose of the community is to recruit, train, and prepare ~ 200 volunteers for each event to help sign up new child sponsors and share adoption related info, during the course of each concert.
American Heart Assocation’s Professional Online Network- community of over 70K cardiovascular professionals
The AHA Professional Membership Organization’s biggest in-person event is Scientific Sessions.
20,000 cardiovascular professionals from over 100 countries come together for 4 days to discuss and present on the latest breaking science news.
Important networking opportunities for professionals
AHA uses their forum as a vehicle to Stimulate excitement around the event, create a space for event FAQs, give members a chance to ask questions, gather questions for speakers // Initial announcements, pre-reg announcement, interviews w/ key speakers, event previews, member-driven Logistical Qs
exclusive sneak-peeks of topics being presented
offer Q&A session for 1st time attendees
-gather questions for speakers
-pre-reg announcements
-crowd-source member driven logical Qs
a great way to make some informal introductions before the event
One of the primary purposes that people attend conferences is to network.
Recognition
There are lots of creative ways to create engagement around your event both for event participants and those members who were not able to attend.
At a recent conference one of our partners organized, attendees were challenged to complete a set of tasks then scan a QR code at the end which would award them a badge.
Think of what activities you want to prioritize at your event and how you can make attendance fun through gamification.
PHOTO BOOTH
PHOTO BOOTH
Ask presenters for additional discussion questions to post on the community to continue the discussion after the conference, Create specific follow up forum topics (URL in meeting handouts)
PROVES THE COMMUNITY ROI
Community as a value driver for the organization
Forte Foundation – Creates opportunities for women in business through education, networking
--,> Facilitate in-person connections (peer to peer networking)
Faceted Member Search
Members Near Me
Custom location-based discussion categories
We see this in-person activity driving more engagement in the community. (weak ties into strong ties)
in between in person meetups, strengthening the relationships
The goal of the program is to help girls become global leaders in the fight to raise awareness and funds for programs supporting adolescent girls in the developing world.) To support this effort, the UN Foundation created Girl Up Clubs.
Before they joined Small World, GU relied primarily on email & in-person activities to mobilize their supporters = expensive and hard to scale. When the Girl Up program moved from its mobilization strategy, to this more grassroots approach with the collaboration and engagement structure available in the Girl Up Clubs community, not only did engagement when up, but fundraising dollars raised by program participants also went up over 20 times, so a 2000% increase in program fundraising
UN Program dedicated to making sure children have access to vacines.
Members report on offline advocacy activity via the forms, then tie that to points and badging.
Download toolkits & other resources to help them be more successful in their advocacy activity
Forte Foundation - students share their reflections for certain activities = will promote more engagement between the Rising Stars and in turn get even more students completing the activities.
Forte Foundation – non-profit consortium of companies & schools working together to create more opportunities for women through access to business education, networking opportunities & a community of successful women.
EVENTS & CAREER RESOURCES
Peer-to-peer and peer-to-mentor networking
Rising Stars program
The EcoLeaders community was designed specifically to provide a virtual space where young leaders can share and inspire action on the ground. It was also created out of the intention to meet our constituents where they are. While we know millennials are passionate about taking action on issues they believe in, we also know that they are very plugged in and turn to online tools to communicate and connect. In the EcoLeaders community young leaders are able to tell their on-the-ground action stories from anywhere, at any time of day. Similarly, students looking to initiate projects can come to EcoLeaders to find inspiration through the projects that other students are leading, as well as guidance and access to NWF’s many resources and ultimately earn national recognition from NWF for their leadership skills.
Messaging, communication, marketing, planning… all coming from the TOP DOWN